One Moment in Time
by AnisaLee
Summary: A gapfiller and fix it fic. Takes place a few days after "Goodbye."


Post-It notes lay in torn shreds against the plush carpeting. Items that had boxed weeks ago, had been placed from where they had come from – the boxes wide open and empty representing a broken dream. Then there was that letter. _The_ letter. The letter that almost solidified that he would never be good enough. That Kurt Hummel would always be second best to someone, or maybe not even second best. Maybe he was just second, or somewhere in the background. Maybe a life outside of Lima was a fantasy and he needed to accept the reality that dreams were simply dreams.

It hurt.

He wasn't ready to let go. Not now. Not ever. Not with Blaine sitting next to him, holding his hand and just simply being there. He flitted between being crushed to outright embarrassed to fine to crushed and the cycle began again. He was embarrassed because he nailed his audition and he still wasn't good enough. He had to stand in front of Blaine and then his father and explain that he wasn't good enough. That NYADA had praised his audition and yet, ultimately decided he didn't belong.

Hours had been spent reflecting on what more he could have done. What more he could've said. What more he could've given of himself that he didn't leave on that audition floor.

Blaine had assured him that no one could've given more heart, soul and passion into a performance than Kurt did. Kurt had done everything. But to Kurt that was worse. He did everything right and it didn't pay off.

With a sigh, Kurt squeezed Blaine's hand a little tighter. His eyes were unfocused as he stared ahead quietly. He was glad that Blaine didn't try to comfort him with words. He didn't need words. He needed to sit quietly and just allow himself to be devastated.

They were both lulled into a place of quiet contemplation when the shrill ring of Kurt's phone went off. He frowned in confusion at the number that flashed across his iPhone screen. Dropping yet another tissue in the bin (he hadn't managed to stop having random outbursts of tears since he received the letter), he cleared his throat and connected the call.

"Hello?" He hoped his voice didn't sound weepy.

"Kurt Hummel?" The voice was authoritative. Almost commanding.

Kurt took the pro-offered tissue from Blaines outstretched hand and dabbed his eyes. "Yes?"

"This is Carmen Tipideaux. I wanted to speak with you for a moment."

"Ms. Tipideaux, I received the letter from NYADA," Kurt tried to keep the bitterness out of his tone.

"I'm not calling about that," she stated. "I know perfectly well what decision I made concerning you."

Kurt could hear the dismissing tone of her voice. "With all due respect, why are you calling, Ms. Tipideaux?" He looked over at Blaine and could see him struggling not to rip the phone from Kurt's hands and tell Madam Tipideaux where she could shove it.

"I have an offer for you, young man. Did you ever stop to wonder why I didn't select you for NYADA?"

"I didn't make the cut," Kurt whispered.

"No. On the contrary. I see great things in you. When you applied, I'm sure you read the rules and regulations you must follow upon being accepted. Students cannot take unapproved roles or auditions and they certainly cannot miss training, which is why I couldn't select you," she paused, "Mr. Hummel, have you ever heard of Christa Nardson?"

He nodded. "She's directed some of the biggest shows on Broadway and regionally."

"Yes, she has. She's also directing a new musical heading for Broadway this fall. It's in the workshop phase right now, but rehearsals for previews begin next month. Mr. Hummel, I'm one of the producers of this musical and we had our lead understudy drop out suddenly. I suggested you as a replacement," she revealed.

Kurt felt his heart stop, "W-what?"

"I cannot accept you into NYADA if you cannot attend the classes. If you take this role, you'd be appearing courtesy of Equity and receive points towards membership. You'd also perform as a chorus member," she went on.

"I –" Kurt was speechless.

"If you are interested, I'll have the information and the schedule sent over. Of course, Christa would like to meet with you and have you read for the role as a formality."

Kurt finally regained himself, "Yes. Yes of course! Thank you!"

"Well, that's settled," she hummed.

"Ms. Tipideaux, can I ask a question?" Kurt murmured.

"Yes?"

"W-why me?" He asked softly. "Out of all the guys who auditioned for you, why me?"

Carmen was silent for a second. "You have something. A fight in you that others don't. It's something I rarely see, but you have a fire in your eyes. You take risks and you stand by your decisions."

"When I got the NYADA letter, I…don't they want actors who are experienced. Don't they want…something more?" Kurt knew he probably should stop speaking, but he couldn't help but wonder.

"Young man, I do not say things I don't mean. So listen to me when I tell you that you impressed me in your audition. You followed your instincts and you bared your soul. What I look for in auditions is, yes if they can sing, but I also look for performances that move me. I want to see who you are through your audition. I don't want to see you pretending to be someone else pretending to be someone else. I want to see you. You didn't try to sound like Hugh Jackman, nor did you try to be a carbon copy of him playing Peter Allen. I saw Kurt Hummel as Peter Allen," Carmen stated.

"I just…things like this don't happen to me," Kurt admitted, his cheeks flushing when he realized what he said.

"I expect great things out of you," he could hear the smile in her voice.

"Thank you," Kurt murmured.

"Goodbye Mr. Hummel."

With shaking fingers, Kurt ended the call. His eyes were wide as he turned to face Blaine.

"Well?" His boyfriend wanted to know.

Kurt felt tears well up in his eyes and before either of them knew it, Kurt had thrown himself into Blaine's arms. A sob escaped him.

It was at that moment that his dad chose to walk by the door. The sound of sobbing was too much, and Burt slowly took a step into the room.

Looking up, Kurt spotted Burt out of the corner of his eye and lifted his head from Blaine's shoulder. "Dad," Kurt cried and stood up to hug his father.

"It's…it's going to be okay, son," Burt tried to comfort him.

"It's…it's not that," Kurt gulped for air. "She…job…role…Broadway," he choked out.

Burt and Blaine shared a look of confusion.

"Breathe," Burt ordered.

It took a few moments, but Kurt managed to calm down enough to pull away from his father's arms. He reached out and grasped his father's hand and Blaine's hand, forming a chain with the two most important people in his life. "Ms. Tipideaux called and she offered me a role in a musical heading to Broadway. She wants me to understudy the lead and be in the chorus!"

"What? Come here!" Burt grabbed Kurt to his chest. "I'm so proud of you!"

Kurt felt himself being let go, only to find himself wrapped in Blaine's arms, his boyfriend's familiar scent filling his lungs.

"I love you," Blaine stated.

"I love you too," Kurt hugged Blaine back.

Blaine smiled, "You're amazing." Kurt smiled back when Blaine pressed a gentle, chaste kiss to his lips. There in the midst of it all, Kurt noticed the pieces of Post-It notes on his floor and couldn't help but see how they no longer looked like torn shred. They looked like confetti. And the boxes no longer looked like empty dreams, but sat waiting to be filled again. Maybe NYADA was only meant to be a mere senior year fantasy. Or maybe he'd wake up tomorrow and discover that he had been dreaming. But at this moment. This one moment in time, as the late Whitney had sung, he wasn't second. He was more than he thought he could be and all his dreams – a heartbeat away.


End file.
